My Own Personal Hell
by LightHope1
Summary: AU:What if Zoe Hart was forced to spend her senior year of high school in Bluebell, Alabama? How would it lead her to be a doctor and the choices and places she went because of it? How do Lavon, Wade, George and Lemon play into the equation?
1. Chapter 1

**My Own Personal Hell**

**By: LightHope1**

**I have been obsessed with the new CW show Hart of Dixie and my mind has been swarming with story plots. So I figured I'd try this out. **

**Feel free to leave me comments and any advice or story direction. I have a path of where I'd like to see this to go but I am always open to suggestions :)**

**BTW: I gave Ms. Hart the first name of Elizabeth (if its revealed in the show I'll make the proper changes)  
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**Things I own: 1.5 Liter of Publix Spring Water Things I don't own: Hart of Dixie**

What if Zoe Hart spent her senior year of high school in Bluebell, Alabama? How would it lead her to be a doctor and the choices and places she went because of it? How do Lavon, Wade, George and Lemon play into the equation?

**Chapter One: Long Hot Summer**

It was hot. Hotter than it was supposed to be for August in Bluebell.

Zoe Hart was having none of it. Even after her cold shower, she could feel the sweat materializing at the edges of her hairline. She changed into shorts and a tank top and used her towel to dry her hair.

"You have got to be kidding me!" Zoe grumbled as she collapsed onto her queen size bed.

She hated the humidity in the south almost as much as she hated her mother for making her stay in Bluebell.

It had been exactly 87 days since she boarded the plan from New York to Montgomery.

Zoe in that moment thought about her mother. How she had ended up in this predicament with no escape and with a one year sentence.

When she was 10, her mother told her that Zoe's real father lived in Bluebell, Alabama and went by the name of Dr. Harvey Wilks.

Her mother told her that Harvey had been awarded visiting rights and that they had come to an agreement about how those visitations would play out.

So every summer after her 10th birthday, Zoe Hart made the journey to Bluebell.

It wasn't exactly the worst circumstances. Zoe got to know her real father and to fall in love with being a doctor. In the early years, coming to Bluebell was a vacation. She made friends with the local kids but never got attached because she knew that come August 1st she would go back home.

As Zoe reached high school, she wanted to stay in New York. During her junior year, Zoe took a part time job to avoid going to Bluebell. Ms. Hart got concerned when her daughter's grades began to slip and she stopped coming home at night.

Zoe had fallen into the wrong crowd.

Then the cops showed up with Zoe at Ms. Hart's front door one morning at the end of junior year.

They warned her of Zoe's bad associations and how it could end up with her daughter in jail.

Ms. Hart tried to take her daughter to therapy but it failed miserably.

As a last ditch effort, Elizabeth (Ms. Hart) called Harvey. She told him about the situation and they agreed that Zoe should spend her senior year in Bluebell.

So it was decided that Zoe would ended up in Bluebell, Alabama for more than a summer.

It was her version of a personal hell.

Zoe stretched, got up from her bed and finished doing her makeup. As she took the stairs in twos she could hear her father on the kitchen phone.

"No Liz, Zoe didn't ask about you yesterday."

There was a long pause.

"She won't be angry forever. She's just being a teenager. I'll pass along your message. Have a good day Liz. " Harvey said.

Zoe ducked under the telephone cord and opened the food pantry. She grabbed a box of cereal and milk from the fridge. As she poured, her father cleared his throat to get her attention.

"Zoe that was your mother on the phone and She…"

"She wanted to say I could come home?" Zoe interrupted.

"Well no, not that but rather she hoped you wouldn't stay mad at her." He said while rubbing his hands together. "You know she is your mother."

"She sent me to Bluebell for a whole year! I don't get to be with my friends for my senior year, I think I can be angry for a while. I have to start all over at a new school and somehow get accepted at a respectable university far away from here." Zoe said while putting the milk away and grabbing her bowl. "I'll be eating on the porch."

Harvey frowned and sighed. This wasn't how it was supposed to be.

Zoe sat staring at the pond and toying with the idea of going swimming. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a white blur. She pretended not to notice and counted till ten.

"BOO" shouted Wade Kinsella from behind Zoe's rocking chair.

Zoe smirked and leapt out of the rocking chair into Wade's arms. He caught her in mid jump and swung her around till she landed on her feet.

She barely reached Wade's arm pit. A few years back, Wade had been shorter than Zoe. Now he had filled out and grown up.

"I cannot believe you're back Wade!" Zoe said as she adjusted her tank top.

"Well, I couldn't stay away from you Zoe Hart." He said while winking at her.

She punched his arm and smiled. "I've been living a personal hell all summer and you were up in the North Carolina mountains for 2 ½ months. "

"Darling, I was working hard."

"At an all girl's summer camp, I think you managed just fine. You didn't have to stay in Bluebell!"

He smirked, "There wasn't a girl half as pretty as you."

" The flattery means nothing to me Wade just as much as your attempts to scare me."

"Hell, it's worth trying. I know you ain't 11 anymore but when I do scare you it's a funny sight."

Zoe smirked and placed her hands on her hips. Wade's eyes did a once over at that moment. He noted to himself that turning seventeen had been good to Zoe Hart.

"Well, what are you doing here so early? I know it's not to see your friend from New York."

"Momma sent me over to ask if your father would make a house call. She's not feeling very well and doesn't want the town to know. You know how the gossip chain starts." He stated.

Zoe nodded in understanding. She had been the victim of a certain Lemon Breeland's gossip chain that very summer.

"Well, we should get my dad."

The two teenagers walked into the house and found Harvey in his study. Pictures lined the walls of the study; most of the photos were of patients and Zoe. Medical books were crammed in everywhere and spilling over his large desk. Dr. Harvey was a very unique general practitioner. He always said it was better to know a little bit of everything rather than only knowing about one thing.

Wade explained his mother's situation and the doctor agreed immediately to help.

"I'm leaving you in charge of the house Zoe." Harvey said as he gathered his medical supplies.

"I got it covered. Wade, are you going with my dad?" she asked hoping he would stay.

Wade smirked and nodded.

It was a simple fact. Zoe liked Wade Kinsella. Everyone knew but Wade.

But there was a very big problem; he was her oldest friend in Bluebell which automatically sabotaged any chance of them ever dating.

Besides, Wade liked tall southern blonde girls with no IQ.

Zoe Hart would never fit that bill.

"I got to go with your dad to check in with my momma and then I got my first day at the Rammer Jammer." Wade said.

Zoe sighed. "I guess I'll see you on Monday at school."

"Sounds about right Zoe, hopefully this heat wave will break before then."

Harvey watched his daughter talk with Wade. He knew there was something between them that was obvious. But he didn't know how he felt about the whole situation just yet.

"Well Wade, we best be going and heading out to your place. I'll see you at supper Zoe." Harvey interrupted and placed his hand on Wade's shoulder.

Zoe nodded at her father abrupt comment and watched the two men walk out the front door.

As Wade slowly closed the door and he gave one last lingering look at Zoe Hart standing alone in the empty room.

"That rain better come soon." He said to himself.

Zoe was lost in a trance till she heard a rustle come from the back to the house. She fallowed the sound to the back porch where she was greeted by the prettiest blue eyed creature on four legs.

"Where did you come from?" she asked the puppy.

The pup barked and went back to her cereal bowl that she had forgotten on the porch when Wade had arrived.

"You found my food. Is that why your still here?" she asked while picking up the bowl. "Well, let me see if I can find something for you."

She opened the screen door and the puppy dashed inside.

"NO!" Zoe screamed as she attempted to chase the puppy around the house. "You have got to be kidding me!"

Zoe had no experience with animals. Her mother despised them.

Finally, Zoe stopped in the kitchen and pulled chicken out of the fridge.

"I am going to outsmart you puppy."

The dog stopped in the living room and watched Zoe take the chicken from its container.

"Here, puppy puppy puppy."

Zoe placed the chicken on the floor and the dog dashed towards it. As he finished eating, Zoe scooped him up and promptly placed him on the back porch.

"You're going to have to wait on my father. Trust me puppy, it could be a while."

The dog tilled his head and licked his chops.

"There ain't more chicken either."

Zoe collapsed into the rocking chair and the puppy lay down next to her feet. She could feel it getting hotter by the second.

"Could it get any worse?" she asked while closing her eyes. "All I want to do is go back to New York."


	2. Chapter 2

**My Own Personal Hell**

**By: LightHope1**

**I have been obsessed with the new CW show Hart of Dixie. **

**Feel free to leave me comments (good and bad) and any advice or story direction. I have a path of where I'd like to see this to go but I am always open to suggestions **

**Things I own: New comfortable socks!**

**Things I don't own: Hart of Dixie**

**Chapter 2: Small Victories**

Zoe let her feet dangle in the cool pond water as she watched the sun set against the Alabama tree line. She had spent the majority of her day in the water; it was the surest way to beat the heat.

"It really can be pretty here." She said to the puppy that lay next her on the old pond dock.

The tranquil moment was broken by a car door slam. Zoe jerked her head in the direction of the noise and watched her father walk towards the house. He looked upset and frustrated just by the way his shoulders sank to the ground like he had the burden of the world.

She remained on the dock and waited for him to come out onto the back porch. The sun crept closer to the earth and her father never came out.

Zoe sighed, shook her feet and walked towards the house with the puppy at her heels.

"You got to stay here" she said while pointing at the puppy to stay on the porch.

The house was dark for the exception of the study room light. Zoe walked in on her father with his face in his hands. Medical books and Wade's mother, Rebecca, file lay open on his desk.

Zoe lightly knocked on the ajar door and waited for her father's response. He waved her in and pointed to the chair across from his desk.

Harvey looked up his daughter and tried to smile. His mind was swarmed with millions of thoughts of if only Rebecca had come to him earlier than now.

"Will Mrs. Rebecca be okay?" Zoe asked while dragging one of the medical books into her lap.

"Zoe, Mrs. Rebecca isn't well and I don't know what I can do to help her." He said quietly.

Zoe let her fingers trace the outline of words that spelled out early onset of dementia and potential heart failure.

Tears nearly brim the edges of Zoe's eyes; she tried to control her emotions from overwhelming her.

"You have to fix Ms. Rebecca. You can fix anything but a broken heart."

Harvey sighed and grabbed his daughter's hand from across the desk.

"I will try everything in my power to help her."

Zoe searched desperately for reassurance. She thought of Wade, his father, and all the other people in Bluebell that loved Ms. Rebecca.

"Does Wade know?" Zoe asked.

"No he does not and Mrs. Rebecca wants to be the one to tell him."

Zoe bit her lower lip and looks back down at the medical books.

"You'll find a way dad." Zoe smiled at her father in that moment. "How about you keep searching the books and I'll order us some pizza."

Wade's mother played an important role in keeping Zoe sanity. She had a way about her that was unforgettable. When Rebecca entered a room all eyes went to her. Zoe couldn't imagine life without her because in many ways Mrs. Rebecca was her lifeline to the city.

Ms. Rebecca had been raised in Chicago and met Wade's father in college. As the story goes, the first day in Bluebell changed her forever and Bluebell changed because of her.

"Zoe, that sounds good."

Zoe stood up and walked outside of study to call in the pizza. As she walked into the kitchen, she watched the puppy sit patiently at the porch door. She called in the pizza and then opened the back porch and scooped up the puppy.

"Let's see what my dad thinks. Don't worry puppy you'll have a home here." Zoe said to the puppy as she walked towards the study.

She cracked open the door and scooted the puppy into the room and then walked in.

Harvey looked up from books to the sight of his daughter and the puppy.

"What is that puppy doing in here?" he asked.

"Well, I found him today. He got into the house and then he spent the afternoon with me. I thought I should ask you if we could keep him?" she asked hopefully.

He sighed and smiled.

"Zoe if that puppy makes you happy than keep him but you have to take care of him."

Zoe grinned and walked over to her father and hugged him. It had been the first sincere hug he'd received since she'd moved in three months before.

"So what's the puppy's name?"

"It's going to be Hurley."

"Good choice." Harvey said while focusing back on his papers.

"The pizza should be here soon." Zoe said while picking up Hurley and walking out of the study.

Hours later, Zoe lay wide awake staring up at the ceiling fan. Sweat dripped from her hairline and she could not sleep wink. She wasn't sure if she was ready to start school in Bluebell in the morning. She knew most of the kids in her grade already from previous summers but it was still a new school and she would be the new girl.

Zoe turned onto her side and looked at sleeping Hurley.

"I wish I could sleep like you. I feel so helpless." She whispered to the puppy.

Then her mind wondered to the fact of how she would face Wade in the morning. She was a horrible liar and everything showed on her face. Then she thought about Mrs. Rebecca and how unfair this was. Zoe's body began to shake and she let the tears finally come. Betweens the tears and sadness, Zoe Hart fell asleep.

The early morning light streamed into her window and Zoe stretched. This was the first day of the rest of her high school career. Today was going to be better than the last. That was a promise.

Zoe stretched and sat cross legged in front her mirror. She fixed her hair, makeup and clothes.

As she came down the stairs she watched her father walk out of his study.

"Did you stay up all night Dad?" Zoe asked while pouring a cup of coffee in the kitchen.

He nodded.

"Any progress?" Zoe asked hopefully

Harvey smiled at his daughter. "We shall find a way to help her."

Zoe watched her father pours a cup of Joe and grab a piece of toast taking in all the details.

"Off to the office, have a great first day Zoe." He said abruptly.

Zoe nodded, grabbed her backpack and followed him to the front door.

He turned around and grabbed two sets of keys from the two hooks.

"Zoe, take the old truck. I know you wanted to have some wheels this year and this is a start."

She was speechless.

For over a month, Zoe had begged to drive a car to school. She harped on how in the social world it was essential to have a car. Her father had given in.

Zoe smiled and dashed outside before her father would change his mind.

The heat hit her like a brick wall. Zoe opened the garage to be greeted by her father's old ford truck.

She touched the edge of the driver's door. This had been the very car that Harvey had driven in the first time they met. She inwardly smiled and hopped into the truck.

She had wheels and that's all that mattered.

"Small victories, that's what will get me by." She said to herself while turning on key in the ignition.


	3. Chapter 3

**My Own Personal Hell**

**By: LightHope1**

**I have been obsessed with the new CW show Hart of Dixie. **

**Feel free to leave me comments (good and bad) and any advice or story direction. I have a path of where I'd like to see this to go but I am always open to suggestion.**

**Things I own: A Starbucks Gift Card and a ton of new clothes :)  
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**Things I don't own: Hart of Dixie**

**I love ALL the comments. Please keep them coming and please note this chapter will be a lot of development and introductions.**

Chapter 3: Saving Zoe

Zoe drove her father's truck, with a death grip on the steering wheel, into the senior parking lot. As she parked, she could see other seniors giving her the stare down.

Zoe Hart was officially the new girl on campus.

She felt butterflies in her stomach but she closed her eyes and used breathing techniques to gain her composure.

"Okay Zoe Hart, you got this!" she said to herself.

Zoe got out of her car and grabbed her backpack. As she closed the door, a crimson colored football whizzed by her head. She ducked lost her balance and felt her back hit and slide down the body of the truck.

"Heads up!" shouted a guy as he trotted up to her truck.

Zoe crouched at tire level and looked up at the boy looming above her.

"Need help?" he said while offering his hand.

"That could have hit me in the face." She said while using her hands to grab the side of the car and then reached for the ball from her truck bed and glaring up at the football player leaning against her truck.

"Well, consider yourself lucky." He said while crossing his arms.

She smirked and answered, "Well consider this football confiscated."

The air of the friendly conservation became stiffening.

"You got to be kidding me! That's my lucky football. I can't win the football game without that!"

"I'd think you being all southern that you'd introduce yourself first before making demands." Zoe said while pointing her finger at the football player.

"Well lookie here missy, I don't know who you are but you got a lot of nerve taking to this all star linebacker this way. Have you ever heard of a friendly bedside manner?" He said while stepping closer to Zoe.

Zoe bit her lip and shifted her weight to the balls of her feet to look taller.

"I have a friend that asks me that all the time. I can be a bit rough around the edges" She laughed "Can we start over?"

Zoe knew the linebacker. She wanted to raise a little hell. She was quick to anger and from the looks of this guy he was not the one to upset even if she was only teasing.

He had not expected her to abruptly become friendly and hesitated with his response.

"My name is Lavon Hayes and I am the captain of the football team." He said while holding out his hand.

Zoe shook hard.

"My name is Zoe Hart. I am Dr. Harvey Wilkes's daughter. I'm from New York but spending my senior year in Bluebell" She said.

"Well Zoe, you got a firm shake for a New Yorker." Lavon said.

"Thank you Lavon." Zoe asked.

Zoe handed over the football. They stood by her truck chatting for a few minutes before the main bell rang. Zoe got a better look at Lavon. He was tall, strong and built for football. He had a way about him that calmed her.

Zoe jerked out of her trance at the bell noise and started walking towards the school with Lavon.

"So Lavon, where is the main office?"

Lavon played with the football and pointed to a small building separate from the school.

"Ask for Ms. Dewitt. She'll advise you on the best classes and such."

"Thanks Lavon." Zoe said while walking towards the administrative building

Lavon watched Zoe walk away and smirked. He had a feeling that Bluebell High was never going to be the same.

"Funny little thing, she sure does have a lot of fire in her." He said while tossing up the football and walking to class.

Zoe's morning quickly evaporated. She was disappointed to not have any classes with Wade. In fact, she had somehow managed to miss him all morning. All the students were friendly enough but Zoe felt on edge.

As the lunch bell rang, she walked to the cafeteria with her packed lunch. As she watched the majority of the teens get cafeteria food she made a mental note to ask for lunch money.

Zoe walked through the rows of lunch tables and finally settled on an empty table in the back of cafeteria. She had hoped to run into someone from class but nobody had waved her over. As she sat down she had the sinking feeling like everyone was talking about her. She rested her head in her hands and pulled her lunch out.

Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Lemon Breeland walking towards her table.

"Well hello, Zoe Hart." Lemon greeted while adjusting her broach on her oxford shirt.

Zoe purposely took a large bite of her sandwich and gestured to Lemon that she had a full mouth.

"I can see that you're enjoying that sandwich. I wanted to come by and extend an invitation for you to sit with my friends and I." she said sweetly.

Zoe took a moment to think about how Lemon phased the invitation. She knew Lemon was up to no good.

"You know Lemon; I really like the view from this table. Thanks for the invitation but I am going to have to decline."

Lemon Breeland was **never** turned down.

She huffed and glared at Zoe.

"You're stupid to turn down my offer Zoe Hart. This is a onetime deal."

"Well Lemon, I don't waste my time with liars. You had a lot of nerve to tell everyone this summer that I was a slut because I flirted with George Tucker. I didn't know you owned him! I'd say you better keep a better eye on your man because he ain't your property till ya'll tie the knot."

Zoe let anger fill every fiber of her being. She had wasted too much of her summer crying over Lemon's nasty comments and rumors.

Lemon huffed and barely above a whisper said, "Zoe Hart you are going to regret saying that to me. I am going to make your life in Bluebell a living hell."

"Hate to break it to you Lemon but I am already in hell."

Everyone was staring.

At that moment, Wade showed up with George. The two men wedged themselves between the two girls. Wade laid his hands on Zoe's shoulders and shook his head.

"I got the blonde you get the brunette," George hollered.

"Well Ladies, I see ya'll are getting reacquainted but I think it's time to talk to other people." Wade said while grabbing Zoe's arm and pulling her away from the Lemon.

Zoe tried to pull away from Wade's grasp but he held a death grip on her till they clear out of the cafeteria.

"What the hell are you trying to do Zoe? You are on the path of social suicide with playing hardball with Lemon Breeland on the first day of school. Even I know where to pick my battles and that one ain't worth the war."

"She started it Wade. I was eating my food minding my own business. She does not own George Tucker or my this school!"

"I don't care who started it Zoe. You got to just lay low for a while no matter what rumors she started this summer."

"But I can't stand her…"Zoe seethed.

"I'm trying to help you here. You're rough around the edges Zoe. It's going to take more than a few summers visits and the reputation of your father to get people to accept you."

"I don't care about acceptance. Wade, all I want to do is to go back to New York! I want to be with my FRIENDS and not in this hell hole."

Wade frowned and crossed his arms. "So, I am not your friend? It ain't my place to judge but seriously Zoe you are better than this."

"Wade, I didn't mean it like that. You're all I got here." Zoe looked down at the floor and then back up at Wade. "Lemon manages to get under my skin and brings out the worst in me. I'll try to fit in Wade but I can't promise anything. I'm just a royal mess."

"You ain't a mess Zoe. You just need to get involved. You're half way there by befriending Lavon Hayes."

She smiled at that comment and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. "I guess that's one positive."

"Hell yes, it is! So no more talk about that living hell nonsense.".

At that moment, the lunch bell rang and students began leaving the cafeteria. Wade placed his hand on the small of her back and guided her away from the middle of the hallway.

"Just promise me to try to fit in and not start anything for the rest of the day Zoe?" he asked.

Zoe nodded. "I'll try my best."

"You got this Zoe Hart." He said confidently. "Now I got to get to history but I'll see you later."

Zoe nodded and watched Wade walk away from her.

"When later?" she hollered at his disappearing figure.

He turned, smiled and waved.

No answer. Such a typical move of Wade.

Zoe smiled to herself and walked towards her classes.

She had one lingering thought …._maybe this is hell but at least I got one person to keep me company._


	4. Chapter 4

**My Own Personal Hell**

**By: LightHope1**

**I have been obsessed with the new CW show Hart of Dixie. **

**Feel free to leave me comments (good and bad) and any advice or story direction. I have a path of where I'd like to see this to go but I am always open to suggestions **

**Things I own: Running Shoes :)  
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**Things I don't own: Hart of Dixie**

**Chapter 4: I Love You Cricket.**

Zoe's eyes shot open as the rooster began his morning song at her window.

"Hell no Rodger! Not this time." Zoe hollered as she scrambled out of bed. She grabbed her cream silk robe, wrapped it around her small frame, and ran down the stairs and slammed open the front door.

She watched the rooster flap down from her window sill and head towards the open field.

"You are NOT getting away that easy!" she said.

Zoe grabbed a broom that was leaning against the railing, put her father's work boots on and dashed for Rodger.

As Zoe ran for the rooster, Harvey sipped on his coffee and watched his daughter. He smiled at the sight that unfolded before him and then he turned back to the files that were stacked up on his desk with the patient name Rebecca Kinsella.

His lips pressed in a firm line as he looked at Hurley resting on the rug in the office.

"What am I going to do Hurley?" Harvey said.

The dog wined and turned his head away from Dr. Wilks. Harvey chuckled and then sat back down in his office chair.

An hour later, Zoe Hart walked up the path that led to her house. In the drive was Wade's black ford truck and it made her smile.

Wade sat on the porch steps while rubbing Hurley's ears.

He looked up to watch Zoe slow walk towards him. She had a broken broom in her hands, mud on her face and a small smile on her lips.

"Well I have to say that's an interesting choice of clothes."

Zoe dropped the broom in her father's wood pile and sat down next to Wade. She brushed a strand of hair behind her ear and smirked.

"I couldn't handle Rodger anymore. He woke the dragon this morning."

Wade chuckled and then silence filled the air. He took his hand and wiped a smudge off Zoe's nose.

"Don't want to go walking around like a mess."

Zoe looked behind her and heard voices coming closer to the main door. Before she could ask for an explanation; Wade began to speak.

"Your dad called this morning. So I got up and drove momma up here and I've been waiting out here. I'm worried Zoe. He sounded sad on the phone and I've heard that tone before. When my grandma died a few years back he used that tone to tell me."

"If anyone can fix your mom it will be my dad! He gets down himself sometimes and don't think such things about your mom." Zoe said confidently.

Wade shook his head and his voice shook as he spoke. "She hasn't been herself Zoe. I come home from school and she's in her study staring into space. Come on you and I both know that my mom is the queen of philanthropy in this town."

Zoe placed her hand over Wade's hand. It was a simple gestured that calmed every nerve in Wade's body.

"Have faith Wade."

Suddenly the front door swung opened and the two teens turned to face the two adults that held grim faces. Fresh tears sprouted from Rebecca's eyes as she looked at her son.

Wade jumped up from his seat and engulfed his mother in a firm embrace.

Zoe looked at her father's strained face and frowned.

"Rebecca, like I said before, I will do all in my power to make you better." Dr. Harvey said.

Rebecca clutched her hands together and leaned into her son. Fresh tears sprang from her eyelids.

"I appreciate everything you have done for me Harvey. Right now I need to be with my family.

Zoe looked at Wade. His eyes were lifeless. All she wanted to do was hug him but before she could he was down the porch steps. His mother in his firm grip walking to the truck.

Zoe looked towards her father.

"She's not going to go get better is she?"

Dr. Harvey shook his head. "It's terminal Zoe. Wade's going to lose his mother."

"How long does she have?"

"She's got a max of six months with treatment."

Zoe saw the sadness in her father's eyes. In that moment, Zoe rushed into her father's arms and hugged him hard.

"I love you Dad."

"I love you cricket."

"Cricket?" Zoe asked while looking up at her father.

"I used to call your mom that. I think you suit it too."

Zoe smirked and went back to hugging her father.

Everything changed forever that day for better and for worse.


End file.
